


Far more mercifully planned

by middlemarch



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Mercy Street (TV), Sanditon (TV 2019), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - MCU, Alternate Universe - Regency, F/M, Romance, Tumblr Prompt, alternate universe - wild west, fic I'll never write
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-06
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-12 05:42:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29879922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/middlemarch/pseuds/middlemarch
Summary: In which the author is a benevolent god after all...
Relationships: Alice Green/Byron Hale, Charlotte Heywood/James Stringer, Jedediah "Jed" Foster/Mary Phinney, Mary Phinney/Samuel Diggs
Kudos: 2





	1. Regency AU

The Honorable Mary Elizabeth Phinney is a reluctant member of the Ton; she would far rather retreat to the family seat Mills Point and continue her mathematical research with only the company of the old housekeeper Mrs. Brannan, but a promise is a promise, and she promised her dearest friend Emma, Lady Greenway, that she would see her way through one Season at least. Promises, the Honorable Mary Elizabeth Phinney believes, are meant to be kept.

Compromises are not. Which is why when she is found alone by foppish Lord Foster in the moonlit conservatory, the music from the crowded ballroom drifting in behind him like the scent of noisette roses, wholly disturbing her examination of some rare blossoms, she shoos him away with a degree of asperity that should have been effective, and considers her duty done. But Lord Foster is too intransigent or too curious or too something that mathematically minded Mary Elizabeth could not quite fathom and that was why Lady Hastings and the Henry, the Marquess Williamstowne, are convinced that an engagement is imminent, as is Lord Foster. Mary Elizabeth doesn’t believe in compromise and Lord Foster is determined to open her eyes to the possibilities contained therein.


	2. College AU

Mary Phinney and Sam Diggs met in King 203, the only two freshmen in Professor Nicholson’s section of Math 329; within a week, the juniors and seniors had dubbed Mary “Rings” and Sam “Fields” and had stopped grousing about letting newbies in. It was over Oberlin’s celebration of Pi Day, specifically over the last piece of shoofly pie and the battle for the last bite, that Rings and Fields became something more. They would have been just two nerds in love, except for the dreams. Mary called them “funny” and Sam called “just plain weird,” their peculiarly shared, peculiarly vivid dreams of Mary’s great-great-great-grandmother Mary Elizabeth and Sam’s similarly vintaged ancestor Samuel, both Oberlin Class of 1845. Were they truly dreams—or something else? Evidence of reincarnation, of ghosts? Or of a shared psychotic break? It didn’t seem like there was anyone to confide in who wouldn’t think they were lovesick, overtired or high, at least until legendary archival librarian Bridget Brannan came across them one night in the stacks.

“Took you long enough,” she said, her tone so practical and annoyed they couldn’t help sharing a smile of pure relief.


	3. MCU AU

Alice Zeleny had had it up to here with Captain America. Steve, he asked to be called, but he wasn’t nearly as humble as he’d like everyone to believe and he had way too many opinions on oatmilk. The rest of the Avengers were no better—well, Bruce actually made eye contact most of the time and Vision was very polite but it didn’t count because he was a goddamn robot and Tony had literally never registered that Alice was alive, on his payroll, maxing out her 401K and was the person who’d sent 47, no, 48 emails about getting a Lelit Bianco espresso maker for the staff room.

Byron (no one ever remembered his last name) just wanted drip coffee and a rechargeable card for the nearest sandwich shop. He’d been skimming money from the accounts set aside for crap like organic toilet paper to wipe the Avengers’ organic asses and Pepper’s endless collective purchases from that GOOP website though the jade eggs can just gotten used for target practice. Working for the Avengers wasn’t a bad job but it was boring when it wasn’t deadly and when Alice Z. approached him, batting her big blue eyes like there was no tomorrow (which, given the rumors of a Blip and a Snap and an UnBlip, UnSnapped and reincarnation, had an unquantifiable impact on a guy who hadn’t had a date since his fuckbuddy Annie had ditched him for a theology student, claiming she’d fallen in love with his soul, c’mon!), when Alice Z. suggested they become partners in a series of pranks that maybe would qualify as war crimes if you squinted, Byron (Boethius Hale, thank you very much) simply said:

“Think bigger, babe.”

Alice would have gagged but Byron had a point. What would it take to knock Steve off his pedestal and make Tony laugh hard enough to give her the espresso maker, a week in his Fiji house-on-stilts, and a real raise? Byron, somehow, was onto something and she was damned if she wasn’t going to be onto it with him.


	4. Wild West AU

Charlotte Heyward got the Sandytown school as soon as the ink dried on her Grade 3 teacher’s certificate, which was mighty helpful, because it allowed her to help Ma and Pa pay for a piano for Sarah and the use of a prize bull for the cattle—and put aside a little money for a new poke bonnet. She liked teaching the little ones their letters and making the older students long for the schoolroom and the next debate or spelling bee. She meant to be a force for good in the world.

Jim Stringer, Young Stringer some called him (them as didn’t know better), was the sheriff of Sandytown, and there wasn’t a straighter shot for miles. He was fair, liable to give a warning before a thrashing, but he was firm; he wanted to build a town with a foundation of clean living, high ideals; a town any evil-doers gave a wide berth, home neither to vultures nor any other scavenging varmints.

When the Parker brothers come sniffing round Sandytown and rumors start flying about what they mean to do when the train comes through, it takes the combined power of Miss Heyward and Sheriff Stringer to set things to rights. And if, in the meantime, a little lovemaking happens when the sun’s sitting on the horizon as big and gold as a prize-winning pumpkin, well, that’s all to the good. That is, if you can convince Miss Heyward and Sheriff Stringer so—and if Sid Parker doesn’t have a change of heart, one that might overturn everyone’s plans…

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "The Land of Might Have Been" by Ivor Novello.
> 
> Four (and counting) ficlets prompted on Tumblr, "fic I'll never write" AU


End file.
